Junje Gowda is the legendary builder of the Male Mahadeshwara temple in hanur taluk of Chamarajanagara District.
He was a local landlord belonging to the Kuruba Gowda community and a devotee of Shri Mahadeshwara Swamy.
Legend has it that Lord Mahadeshwara visited the house of Junje Gowda, a wealthy landlord of the Kuruba caste and a devotee of the god Beredevara.
Junje Gowda is said to be responsible for all the temples built in the mountainous region of eastern Karnataka called the Mahadeshwara Hills.
But the Junje Gowda family is still living the village called Kadamboor, in Hanur taluk.